Abstract
Purpose: In 2014 the American Society for Radiation Oncology's Accreditation Program for Excellence (APEx) was created in response to the Target Safely campaign. APEx is a powerful tool to measure and drive quality improvement in radiation oncology practices. Methods and Materials: A task group from the American Society for Radiation Oncology's Practice Accreditation Committee was formed to provide an overview of the APEx accreditation program including analysis from specific program data. Results: Through initiatives encouraged by the APEx program, participants are able to evaluate teamwork and effectiveness, implement documented procedures aimed at improving quality and safety, and establish quality management at the practice. The program's Self-Assessment measures performance with program requirements and indicates where compliance lacks standardization. Methods to address these deficiencies form part of on-going quality improvement. These quality outcomes promote the delivery of safe, high-quality care. Conclusion: The accreditation process through APEx is a commitment to an ongoing safety culture. Any worthwhile accreditation program should provide a meaningful assessment of practice operations, supply the tools to identify deficiencies and provide the opportunity to showcase growth and development. A commitment to completing APEx is a commitment to excellence for patients and all those who care for them.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 101-107 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Practical Radiation Oncology |
| Volume | 11 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Mar 1 2021 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:Sources of support: This article was funded by the American Society for Radiation Oncology .
Funding Information:
Disclosures: The work presented is derived from a working group of American Society for Radiation Oncology’s (ASTRO) Practice Accreditation Committee. Before the initiation of this article, all authors completed disclosure statements. These statements are maintained at ASTRO headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. ASTRO’s Clinical Affairs and Quality Council reviewed these disclosures and determined they do not present a conflict with respect to the task force members’ work on this consensus article. In addition, Thomas Boike is a National Cancer Institute Prostate Cancer task force member and received an advisory board honorarium from AstraZeneca; Jean Wright received a research grant from Oncospace Inc.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 American Society for Radiation Oncology